The invention relates to a cutting method more particularly for cutting through filler masses formed from layers of expanded foil.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,356,256 to J. Szego and patent application Ser. No. 818,581 filed July 25, 1977, entitled Anti-Explosion Filler Masses, disclose masses composed of multiple layers of expanded aluminum foil which are used as explosion-suppressive inserts in fuel containers. On occasion it may be necessary to cut through these masses and trim them or shape them to appropriate contours and dimensions, so that the mass can be inserted into a fuel container, and can completely fill all the voids in the container.
Conventional shears can be used for cutting individual pieces of the expanded foil, but cannot satisfactorily be applied to cutting multiple-layer masses, and tend to compress the masses and permanently deform them. Conventional double-bladed reciprocating saws, such as are supplied for cutting through expanded plastic foam materials, have been found also to be unsuitable, as they tend to abrade the mesh strands of the metal and produce quantities of metal dust.